More gaps October 20, 2009

It has been a while – again – since I posted.  A combination of moving house, not much crafting activity because of the moving house and a real weariness that creeps in when you are… moving house has kept me away from the blog.  Still, it will be over soon and in a new house, life can get back to a more moderate pace.

Some time ago I blogged about a pair of board shorts that I made for my boy.  I loved making them and love seeing him wear them.  Since then, I have made a matching hat and got that lovely photo of him wearing them. I am so proud of them and how he looks in them, it brings a little tear to my eye. What a very special boy he is.

There won’t be any more sewing until the move is over and I am set up again but I have been doing a bit of knitting in the evenings.  Last night I finished Damson (Rav link) but not sure if it will get blocked any time soon.  You need to spread out all the little frilly bits on the bottom edge and I have packed my blocking boards.  Still, it is pretty and I am pleased that I did it.  I am thinking I might also try some lace knitting while I am trying to keep the projects to a minimum.  It will force me to concentrate on just one thing for a while and I did happen to keep some lace weight yarn out of my packing.

I just realised that I forgot to post the blocks that I made for the October ‘Around the Block’ Party.  I am loving this swap even though I am still a bit remote from it because I haven’t had a lot of time to really get involved in the Flickr group.  Still, I have learnt so much in the first three rounds and I really can’t wait to see the other patterns and fabrics that will come through.  We got these fabrics just as we signed the contract on the house so I made sure I got them done quick smart.  I really enjoyed the process of laying out the fabrics and fiddling with the colour and width options.  I also loved the free flow of this type of block making.  It was great fun.

Fabulous… even if I do say so myself.

Wonky Houses October 4, 2009

Because we have been looking to buy a new home, when I found out we are making Wonky Houses, my heart sank.  I was a bit over houses.  I’d been through too many houses and then the contract that we had on one that we wanted fell over because… well, because it was Wonky (the house not the contract)!  Still, I have persevered and now I am just in love with Wonky Houses.  I mean what is not to love.  It doesn’t matter if these houses are wonky… the wonkier the better and you can have all the features you want .. all within your price range.  So now I have finally finished my Wonky House for the lovely Helen and I hope it will become a very happy home. This wonky house is close to schools and parks – it has a great view and a lovely garden.  The size is juuust right for a little family of 3 and there is room for a pool.  I have just received the fabrics for the next blocks so I’m making it a priority to get those done very soon.

The block is a bit big but I left it that way so that Helen can decide how much grass and sky she wants and crop it accordingly.

Fortunately, it looks like we have found another house that is rock solid so hopefully within a month or so, we will be moving.  And all this house hunting has meant that I have been a bit quiet of late because there are just only so many hours in a day.  And moving is not going to change that much but I have still been enjoying a bit of quiet time in the evening.

I made my Mum an Eva Shawl for her birthday.  It is in Bendigo Woollen Mills Alpaca in Tosca and Black (thanks Donna) and I used a 6mm hook for the most of the shawl and went down to a 5.5 for the edging.  It is the wrong time of year to be presenting a shawl but I’m sure she will use it next Winter.

I am also working on a Razor Cami which needs the straps done and a Damson shawl but progress is slow.

Around the Block September 5, 2009

While finishing the Chaletgirls Block Swap a few of the girls started to think about the next swap and came up with the Around the Block swap. I have also signed up although I have been very quiet, sitting in fear that I am just not good enough to participate.  The first fabrics arrived early, raising the stress level as they are all fabulous fabrics – ones that I have only just read about but never really seen in person.  The blocks made by the early adopters were absolutely beautiful and I struggled to understand how I could do the fabrics justice.  Until of course, I stopped panicking and just started sewing.  I pulled out the fabrics I put together for my (still in slow progress) Mod Sampler Quilt and cut some strips and found some scraps to play with.  I really don’t know what I was worried about.  After a few practice blocks (the best shown here), I have been able to put together a practice block using Oh Franssons Scrappy Starling tutorial and a scappy block that I sewed myself by just sewing together leftover pieces adding them to each edge of the block as I went and cutting off the excess.    The first block allows you to cut a whole bunch of strips and then sew and cut them to length as you go.  The second allows you to just pick the pieces you want from your scrap pile and sew and trim as you go.  I thought it would be quite wasteful but with a little thought, it has been very successful.  And very enjoyable.  I like the free flow of both these sorts of blocks with their emphasis on the sewing not the cutting.  My problem now is only that I need more scraps because if you start to cut in to large pieces of fabric it sort of defeats the purpose.  Possibly perfect for a matching cushion cover or such at the end of a quilt project.

And then of course, I moved on to the real thing.  I’m happy with the results of the first block and the second, well, the it does feel a bit like ‘leftovers’ but I think it is ok.  What I realised after all the sewing was done is that neither is a true ‘log cabin’ block but I hope that it doesn’t matter too much.  The look and feel is there I think and I used the fabrics as best I could to get the result I wanted.

It was really fun in the end.  Wonky houses next – bring it on.

ETA – a big thanks to Donna who was there for me when I needed to ‘phone a friend’!

Still catching up September 3, 2009

I still seem to be trying to catch up with all of my life online at present, paying bills, checking emails, work, blogging… I just seem to be a bit behind.  There is a good reason, we are looking to buy another house soon and so I stalk real estate instead of craft and I spend time looking at survey maps, titles, easement documents as I sort the wheat from the chaff.  It is all pretty thankless and not inpirational at all.  Except that it is another big decision you make on your life’s journey and not one to be taken lightly.

Anyway… I have still had time for some FO’s

I made this little ray after seeing it on a new Rav friends projects list.  Hers is better than mine but I do think he is cute.  I made him because we have annual passes to SeaWorld on the Gold Coast and we go there regularly.  There is a big Ray pond where you can touch them as they swim past.  My boy loves it.  Unfortunately, he has not yet bonded with this little fella.  When I asked him if he would like to give him a cuddle he said NO!  Do you like him… NO! and the poor little Ray was thrown across the room. Ah well, you can’t win them all.

you can thank my husband for the photo – he suggested the Ray should be photographed on some blue.

But my next is a triumph – a pool robe made from a towel using this pattern and easy peasy so fantastic to do.  We also go to Wet n Wild a lot so I think this will get a lot of use.  Excuse the odd applique placements, I was covering up some bleach spots on this particularly nice and fluffy but previously damaged towel.  Most mothers would have gone out and spent the money on a new towel in just the right colour… not me… poor lad.  It was a lovely towel though and now it is a lovely robe.  Special mention to Amy as her buttons are just perfect for this little project.  Best thing I did, buying her buttons.

there are a few more appliques on the back (thomas and percy) and it fits him beautifully.  It was my first time using bias binding around a curved edge and it took me 3 attmpts to get it even close but this will have to do for now.  I made the bias myself after reading Nikki’s fab tutorial and buying myself a nifty clover bias maker.  You can’t beat fellow bloggers for giving you the confidence to give things a go.

Other than this, I am working on another Eva Shawl to give to my Mum for her birthday.  It is in BWM Alpaca and it is turning out to be really special (as it should for my special Mum).  Pics when it is done (although I don’t think she reads my blog so it probably won’t matter).

Life is good at the moment but it feels like the calm before the storm.

Miss me? August 25, 2009

It has been a while since I have blogged for three good reasons:

1. I have had limited access to a computer for the usual reasons
2. I have been trying to reduce my online time in order to be a bit more productive offline
3. I haven’t really felt like it

I feel a bit dissappointed in myself because at this point, this is the only place that I am actually keeping track of what is going on in my life.  For example, I should have blogged on Saturday night when Gryff said his first full sentence ‘I want to stay in the bath’ (not ’stay.. in … bath”, not ‘bath… bath… bath… (repeat until you go a bit loopy) but a real sentence!  I should also have blogged that he has started saying his own name (such as ‘it’s Gryff’s turn’ and ‘they are Gryff’s pants’), refering to people as me and you and can take his own shirt and singlet off without help.  I also know how much I love to see regular updates from the blogs that I follow, particularly the ones which involve a bit of family life and expose a bit about who we are.

But now is my chance to catch up and show off a few of the things I have been working on.  The most important is that I finally finished the Chaletgirls block swap round 6.  This round seemed to take me a long time but I am pleased with the results.  I found the blue gingham particularly challenging but in the end, it all worked out.

Second, I made this this little wee bunny from the wee wonderfuls free patterns range.

I had been thinking about quite a few big projects and decided that I needed to make something so I made this little guy on the spur of the moment, wanting to try out some embroidery.  I pulled out a thrifted flannel pillow slip that was too small for pyjama pants for my boy and a thrifted chenille double bedspread.  As you can see, the bunny is great, the embroidery is rubbish.  I think choosing to try this out on a chenille bunny was a bit of a mistake so I have pulled out some coloured fabric and calico for the front to try again.  I have also chosen the wrong thread and feel lke there is a whole world that is about to open up for me as I work out what this thread business is all about. Still, I think he is a very cute bunny.  My boy likes him too.

I have also finished the Shalom Cardi which I knitted with the Cascade Ecological skein I bought from the fabulous Tangled Yarns.

I am really pleased with it even though I thought initially that I had made it a bit big but it is really comfy which makes me thing that perhaps I tend to make my jumpers and vests a bit small.  Anyway, I resisted the temptation to put a coconut shell button on  it and found this lovely button the the Beutron Retro range.

I think it is a perfect vest for winter in Brisvegas where it still rarely gets below 20 degrees C during the day.

My next FO is a Lazy Day hat from the Make It Perfect range. Modelled by Gryff while we were strawberry picking (BTW I think they should weigh the kids before and after, not the buckets!)

Unfortunately it is a wee bit small for Gryff so I am going to make it again in the larger sizes for the whole family.  It was a good learning exercise as I have been keen to make hats but never been able to follow the pattern to fruition.  I  can easily keep this one for a gift for a smaller child.

And then finally, the best thing I have made in the last week.  This is one of those things that I loved from beginning to end, from when I saw this fabulous fabric on sale at Spotlight to when I had the little boy try them on (but omitted to have the camera handy then).

I love these board shorts made from a ripstop type cotton, showing just how boys should wear more flowers.  I can’t wait to get him back in them to take a photo.  I can’t wait to have a photo of him running around on the beach with them.  I love them so much I went back and bought the rest of the fabric on the roll (only 2 metres unfortunately) so he can have another pair next year, a lazy day hat and anything else I can think of to make for him.  I am going to stalk fabric stores for more fabulous boy flowery fabric like this.    I have a few more pairs of 3/4 length pants and shorts in the pipeline for the coming summer.  Watch this space!

Whew! thats it for now – I think I might try to do this a bit more often!

Husbands! July 27, 2009

Its been hard to blog lately as access to our main computer has been…. limited.  You would think that being married to a computer geek (who works in IT, speaks geek language and spends his evenings doing geeky things) would have computer advantages but I can assure you the opposite is true.  There does not seem to be one day when I can turn it on and things will be the same as the last time it was turned on.  We have multiple hard drives, run 3 different operating systems (testing environments) and a wide range of accessories which may or may not work (depending on which computer is running them).  I try to keep all my ’stuff’ in a discrete little corner of an external hard drive but for some reason, it has been found and needed to be ‘tidied’ (this from a man that has trouble finding the washing basket with his socks and is always complaining that nothing is ever where he left it (because that is usually on the dining table just before dinner is ready).  So now my camera link, the place I like to put all the photos when they are downloaded and my ‘notes to self’ are all in different places.  He thinks it is ‘clever’.  I think it is daft.  Hopefully, very soon I can move them all back together again. Otherwise I will scream.  Please.. please can I have my own computer (from the many that we run in our house) and please, please, please can it be left alone.

Enough husband bashing!  He is lovely … really…

So what have I been up to?  This last week I finished the light and airy scarf made from the fabulous mohair / silk yarn dyed by Knitting by Zen and edged it with the Kaalund that Donna gave me.  I really wanted to see what the two looked like together and am so pleased with the result even if the yarn was a bit more aqua than I was expecting.  I can’t wait for my next project with these two together.

Then I put together a little shrug with a leftover 200g ball of Bendi 8ply Rustic (peppercorn).  I used the chevron pattern from Milobo’s chevron lace cardi and the same yarn, just made a big rectangle and seamed it under the arms.  It is suprisingly warm and I have worn it a few times.  No pictures as I have promised not to take any more photos in the bedroom mirror but I’ll get one soon.

My greatest achievement this week was this lovely little library bag for my boy.  I love making him things.  I put a couple of big pockets on one side (to hold a small bear and a pencil case) and his name on the other to practice more machine applique.  Its better than last time but still needs work.

And I also added a couple of rows on to the bottom of one of his vests.  Just trying to get it to last until the end of this winter. I love crochet… just add in yarn and keep going.  The yarn is a bit different but I’m sure a wash or two will sort that out. Not that pretty but fast and functional.  Love it.

I have still not been tempted to start on another big yarn project and realised today that as the weather seems like it is getting a bit warmer, I’m probably not inspired by any big woolly projects so I’m still looking at smaller, lighter garments.

diets…. July 23, 2009

I have been pretty good with my self imposed yarn / fabric / patterns/ vintage sheet diet although not perfect. I did pick up a lovely sheet and a couple of op shop patterns the other day but it was so insignificant, it is hardly worth mentioning (so I won’t, in the vain hope that nobody notices). I HAD to buy some yarn to finish off a shawl for a friend  but I only bought what I needed. I have felt very proud of myself as I put stuff back, walk away, decide that I just don’t need it at present. I have done a few swaps on the Karma Yarn Thread on Ravelry but I don’t think that swapping counts.  I have also bought a few flannel sheets because they make fabulous PJs for the boy. I did get some yarn for my birthday recently which is like a treat and I do have to buy some yarn for my Mums birthday present because she wants a particular colour that I don’t have. And then my husband said ‘do you know where we can get some old sheets from? (to use as drop sheets for our house painting).  I mean.. how can he not notice?  How unobservant can he be?  So I got some for him and just a few for me!   But still, despite this, the diet is continuing and like most good diets, it might actually just start to becoming a way of life.  Not all life, just  day to day life.   Still, I still have the materials I need for the new projects I want to start.

Which gets me on to my big problem.  Starting new projects.  I am so wary of getting myself into WIP hell again, I don’t want to start anything.  Well, anything big… I am just doing little projects that I can see the beginning, middle and end of.  Probably OK for now but starting to think that I am just thinking too much.

Still, I have renovations / painting / organising to finish in the house, my employer wants me to take on more days and my boy needs more of my time than ever.  Life seems full of decisions at present so not being able to commit to anything big should not be any surprise to anyone… let alone me.

I’ve got the Clap… July 17, 2009

… The Clapotis (that is),  finished!

How exciting is that!  It was one of my big projects to finish as part of WIP month and now it is done.  I have blogged before (here and here) about how unrewarding the knitting is in this project and of course, as everyone before me (at least 11,000 people on Ravelry alone) has commented, at the end you just love it.  And I do too.  It drapes beautifully and even if I wasn’t wild about the colour choice of my yarn, I think that the variation of colour that it has across the diagonal works really well.

and Ta Da…. here it is.

I didn’t block it, I just soaked and dried it and I don’t think it needs any more than that.

Thanks to Kate Gilbert for such an inspired pattern.

You will be pleased that I am no longer trying to take photos in our bedroom with the garment on.  I finally realised that they never really worked out, my bed was never made well enough, you could see the clothes that didn’t make it in to the hamper and usually my mirror was covered with toddler fingerprints to such an extent, you probably couldn’t see the item well anyway.  Until I can get the little boy to take the photos, I think we will just have to do them on the back deck.

So what next….I have just cast on another little light and airy scarf to experiment with my kidsilk haze and the lovely kaalund yarn that Donna gave me for Christmas.  I am knitting the scarf and then I am going to crochet a little border on each end.  I think it will be very sweet. Short and sweet.

Block Party #5 July 13, 2009

So that I don’t forget this time, I am posting the photos of my latest block party offering as I put them on the Flickr site.

The first set are for our fabulous block party hostess so they had to be special!

The fabric at the top left is my favourite fabric in my stash and so I was really pleased that it worked.  I don’t really know why I like it so much but there you go! I have to admit to buying a little piece of fabric to get these finished but that is allowed during my continuing diet month.

The others are for Becky – I hope she likes them

I am pretty up to date with these blocks and that feels good so I am under no pressure to force the process.  It is such fun.

Now I am really in love.. July 12, 2009

With this shop

Ribbons!  I can’t wait to get some on Gryff’s pants and everything else that I sew.  How cute!